John McElroy - Wildcat football (1957-59)
POPLARVILLE - John McElroy is the first to admit that as far as his football career is concerned, he was a late bloomer.
So when he returned home to Marion County following a trip to Oklahoma City with his grandparents following his senior year
(1957) at Columbia High School, and his mom told him that Coach Dobie Holden had stopped by and said he wanted McElroy
to play football for him at Pearl River Junior College, McElroy’s response was, "Are you sure about that?"
McElroy was a 6-foot, 170-pound "wiry guy," in his own words.
"I remember Elmer Cook and I went down there together," said McElroy. "He was a big ol’ boy and there I was. I was scared
to death to go into his office. I mean we had all heard of Coach Holden, but I never thought I would ever have the chance to play
there."
McElroy, who spent some 35 years coaching high school football in Louisiana and Mississippi, did more than play for the
Wildcats. As an end, he played both ways for the Wildcats. His sophomore year, Pearl River finished with an 8-2 record and
defeated Wharton, Texas, 30-20 in the Hospitality Bowl.
"In Dobie’s system, the end was more of a blocker," said McElroy. "I remember the spring of my sophomore year, we were
short on players. Coach Holden moved me to running back. I had never played there before. The fall came along and,
fortunately, we got some good players in, and he moved me back to end. Bobby Weaver was our quarterback. He could throw
the ball."
NAME: John McElroy
HOMETOWN: Columbia
FAMILY: Wife, Sylvia (married 41 years). Children: Doug McElroy of Columbia; Beth Mock of Columbia. Grandchildren: 4 (3
boys, one girl)
EDUCATION: Graduated Columbia High School, 1957; attended Pearl River Junior College, 1957-59; graduated from Delta
State University, 1961.
OCCUPATION: High school coach, Thibodaux, La. 14 years; Pine, La. 6 years; Columbia Academy, 5 years; Columbia High
School, 17 years. Currently retired.
Joe Newton - Wildcat football (1958-60)
Joe Newton was like many players who played for the legendary Dobie Holden at Pearl River Junior College, as it was called
back in the 1950s.
Newton was a good athlete who could play more than one position.
His freshman year in 1958, he played guard on a Pearl River team that finished the year 8-2, including three shutouts and a
30-20 victory over Wharton, Texas, in the Hospitality Bowl.
His sophomore year, Holden moved Newton to end, where he played both ways on a Pearl River team that finished 9-0-1, won
a state championship and defeated Henderson, Texas, 30-0 in the Hospitality Bowl.
"Losing wasn’t an option with Coach Holden," said Newton. "It was the winning attitude he always had. We would run the same
play a whole practice until we got it right. He believed in the basics. He believed in motivation. He was that type of person. You
earned his respect. He sure made a difference in my life over the years."
During his sophomore season, the Wildcats recorded five shutouts. The most points they allowed were 20 in a 20-20 tie with
Mississippi Delta. For the year, the 1959 Wildcats outscored their opponents 294-57. Newton himself scored on two
touchdown passes in the bowl victory.
At the end of the 1959 season, Newton was one of five Wildcats named to the Mississippi Junior College All-Conference team.
He also lettered on the Pearl River baseball team for two years.
Newton was a star athlete at Hattiesburg High School. He played guard and end for Coach Reese Snell. One day, Snell called
Newton, Clifton Keith and Thomas Malone into his office and introduced them to Holden, who offered them all scholarships.
NAME: Joe R. Newton
HOMETOWN: Hattiesburg
FAMILY: Wife, Judy (married 23 years). Children: Amanda Newton, 18, Angela Newton, 17, stepson Daniel Mott, 23.
Former wife, Karen. Children: Ronnie Newton, Martha Newton, Don Newton. Grandchildren: 7 (4 boys, 3 girls). Twin brother:
Jon Newton.
EDUCATION: Graduated Hattiesburg High School, 1958; graduated Pearl River Junior College, 1960; graduated from
Southeastern Louisiana, 1962.
OCCUPATION: Played semipro ball in Mobile; Scott Paper Co., 9 years; insurance business, 15 years; retired.
Larry Stanford - Wildcat athletics (1971-97)
Larry Stanford was Director of Public Relations at Pearl River Community College for 29 years.
He was the longtime radio voice of Wildcat sports. He attended a record 266 consecutive Wildcat football games from 1971
until 1997, and kept statistics for all of the school’s sports teams. He personally witnessed nearly 200 football victories.
But, truth be known, Stanford was a fan at heart of Pearl River College long before he went to work there under former
President Marvin White.
"When I was 4 or 5 years-old, my dad or my uncle would take me to (Coach) Dobie Holden’s games in the 1950s," said
Stanford. "I was just in awe of all those guys. In the 1970s, Joey Howard and I started doing research and compiling all those
records. At the time, the state did not have any records, and they wound up using the records we had compiled.
"So, my relationship with the school lasts half as long as Pearl River College has been around."
And, that relationship is one reason Pearl River athletics gets the notoriety it does today.
Said head football coach John Russell, who coached the Wildcats (1967-73) during Stanford’s early years at the school, "Before Larry got there, we didn’t get much recognition in the newspapers. After he got there, we got more and more publicity."
"Even though I never played a down at Pearl River, to be included with these other great players is quite an honor," said
Stanford. "There were some tremendous athletes who played ball there."
Indeed, and it was Stanford’s job to get them all the publicity he could. But his job at Pearl River involved much more than
attending and publicizing sports events. Sports was not the focus when he was hired.
After graduating from Poplarville High and Pearl River, he received a communications degree from the University of Southern
Mississippi. He took over his dad’s trucking firm, which was a seven-day-a-week job. While on the road one day in 1971,
President Marvin White called Stanford with a job offer.
"Dr. White knew I had a degree in communications," recalls Stanford. "He called and left word with my mom for me to call. So I
called him from one of the dairy farms on the road. He said, ‘You want to be our public relations director?’ After working 130
straight days, I said, ‘Yes sir. I sure do.’ He said, ‘Be here Monday.’ I didn’t start that quick, but that’s how it started."
The job included teaching journalism classes, taking photographs, producing the yearbook and school newspaper, as well as
writing news releases. He was even in charge of the campus post office for 18 years.
NAME: Larry Stanford
HOMETOWN: Poplarville
FAMILY: Wife, Kitty; one son, Shane Stanford of Petal, wife, Barbara. Grandchildren: 3 (Sara Grace, Julie Anna, Emma
Leigh); 2 by marriage (Jeremy and Samantha). Mom: Betty Stanford of Lake Hillsdale.
EDUCATION: Graduated from Poplarville High School, 1966; graduated from Pearl River Community College, 1968;
graduated from USM, 1970.
OCCUPATION: Director of Public Relations, PRCC, 29 years; owner-operator, Kings Arrow Ranch, Inn & Golf Course,
Lumberton; President of Stanford Development LLC.
Phil "Doc" Hudson - Wildcat trainer (1974-95)
Ask former Pearl River Community College President Marvin White about how important Phil "Doc" Hudson was to the Wildcat
athletic program and he will tell you that Hudson had the confidence of the players and coaches that he could heal them.
Hudson, a native of Lubbock, Texas, and former Biloxi resident, spent more than 20 years as Pearl River’s trainer, beginning in
1974 and ending in the mid-1990s.
"He was our first trainer," said Dr. White. "Anyone who got hurt or injured on this campus, whether it was an athlete or a
student, they would find Coach Hudson on the campus or off the campus. He developed the reputation of being able to help
them. The coaches really thought a lot of him."
And so did the people in the community, according to former Public Relations Director Larry Stanford.
"Doc could take his hands, move them along a muscle or a joint, and diagnose the problem," said Stanford. "It was amazing how
well he could do that. He loved Pearl River athletes. People in the community, faculty and staff would go to him."
Hudson was not paid a salary for his work at Pearl River. He received free room and board for his services. Said Dr. White, "Money back in those days was scarce, but we were sure appreciative of his efforts."
Hudson’s work as the school’s athletic trainer has earned him a place in the college’s Sports Hall of Fame. He will be inducted
Saturday, Oct. 21, during 2006 Homecoming festivities on the Pearl River campus.
"This is an extreme honor for me," said the 90-year-old Hudson, who is recovering from a hip replacement. "I hope I am worthy
of it. I believe in Pearl River College. My time there was one of the greatest periods in my life."
One of those appreciative of Hudson’s work was David Earl Johnson, a PRCC assistant football coach from 1974-81.
"Doc was a strict disciplinarian when it came to his training room," said Johnson. "It was always in excellent condition. We didn’t
have a trainer until he came here. Back then, my family stayed on campus and Doc would come eat with us. He was a part of
our family."
Following his graduation from Biloxi High in 1935, Hudson got his start in athletics repairing athletic equipment at Gulfport under
Coach Kid Brewer. When Brewer moved to Appalachian State Teachers College in Tennessee, Hudson went with him and
attended school.
He graduated from Appalachian State with a B.S. in history and an M.A. in health and safety education. He stayed on as a
freshman coach until World War II.
"A friend of mine had a son playing at Pearl River, so one night he asked me to go to a game with him," said Hudson. "So I did.
After the game, Dr. White asked me to come back the next week. I did. After that game, they offered me the job. I worked for
room and board, and lived in old Bilbo Hall."
He was the trainer under head football coaches John Russell, J.C. Arban, Mike Nelson and Willie Coats.
"I have never been anywhere where I was treated any nicer than I was at Pearl River," said Hudson. "I worked with some of the
finest people I have ever worked with."